Knitted fabric and hosiery made therefrom.



. SCOTT.

R. W KNITTED FABRIC AND HOSIERY MADE THBREF ROM.

, APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. 22, 190 5. 1,018, 1 84.

Patented Feb. 20, 1912.

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ROBERT W. SCOTT, 0F LEEDS POINT, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, T0 SCOTT & WILLIAMS, INCORPORATED, OF CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY,

A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

KNITTED FABRIC AND HOSIERY MADE THEREFROM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 20, 1912.

knitted web intended for the production of such hosiery.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure 1,

represents a stocking web made in accord- .ance with my invention; and Flg. 2, shows an exaggerated view of the stitches in that portion of the knitted webto which my invention particularly relates.

The novel features of my invention are .restricted to the heel and knee portions of the stocking, and to What I term a garter band at the top of the stocking, this garter band being intended for the attachment of the garters or hose supporters commonly used.

In carrying out my invention I first produce, upon a machine having two independent sets of needles and corresponding cams and yarn guides so disposed that they are capable of either joint or independent operation, a tubular web comprising in alternation, ordinary rib fabric and what I term bi-knit fabric.

By the term bi-knit fabric I mean two independent single webs, preferably united at intervals. The compound ribbed and biknit web is produced in definite lengths and afterward cut into sections, each of a proper lengthfor the leg of the stocking, and each comprlsing, by preference three lengths},

4: and 5, of bi-knit fabric, and four lengths 6, 7, 8 and 9, of ribbed-fabric, the stitches of the ribbed fabric 9 beingthen applied to the needles of a separate machine calculated forth'e' production of single fabric and by preference having a less number of needles than thestitches of the ribbed fabric thus applied, so that certain of saidn'eedles receive a plurality of said stitches. Upon this second machine is then knit the foot 10 and toe 11 of the stocking, the toe being, by preference, of the. character known;- .,to the trade as a seamless toe, that is to say, a toe produced by means of a bag or pocket re-, sulting from knitting back and forth upon a certain number of needles of the footing machine, first narrowing and then widening, so as to efiect a union of the stitches along the line :11, the stitches cast from these fashioning needles being then united by the ordinary looping machine to the stitches cast from the remaining needles of the machine, so as to form what is practically a seamless union along the line w, thereby effecting the closing of the toe.

Fig. 1, shows the web in the condition in which it leaves the footing machine, the dotted lines showing the web after the toe has been closed and the stockinghas been boarded and pressed so as to turn the foot web to the proper angle in respect to the leg. Such formation of a footh with seamless toe is common in ordinary practice, and hence need not be further referred to, my invention relating specifically to the formation of the leg and heel web, which is accomplished in the following manner:

Assuming that in the first place rib knitted fabric 6 is being produced upon both sets of needles with a multiple yarn feed, a garter band 3 is first produced by causing lndependent instead of cooperative operation of the two sets of needles, that is to say, the yarn from one or more of the yarn guides is caused toform stitches upon one set of needles and the yarn from the other guide or guides is caused to produce stitches upon the other set of needles, this result being effected by a change in the operation of the cams whereby the needles are reciprocated in the manner setforth in the patent of D. C. Bellis, No. 714,998, dated Dec. 2, 1902, certain of the needles of one set being caused to receive yarn from the guides which normally" feed the needles of the other set, as explained in said patent, the result being. the productionof two independent single fabrics aand b, which are united or tied together' at intervals y by yarn of one fabric engaging with the other fabri a If, however, stitches of the same character are used in knitting both the ribbed and bi-knit portions of the web, the latter will not possess the same degree of elasticity as the ribbed portions, hence I preferto draw longer or coarser stitchesin the bi-knit fabrics than in theribbed fabrics, thereby permit-ting said bi-knit fabrics to stretch to an extent equaling or approaching the capacity of the ribbed fabric and thus preventing excessive strain upon the stitches composing said bi-knit fabric. This formation of longer or coarser stitches in the bi-knit fabrics also permits me to use coarser or heavier yarns in either or both of said hiknit fabrics than in the ribbed fabric, thereby producing a'bi-knit fabric having better wearing qualities than the ribbed fabric, such increase in size or weight of the yar s being preferably effected by adding an additional strand or strands to the yarns in changing from ribfabric to bi-knit fabric.

Having completed the production of a length of bi-knit fabric 3 suflicient for the garter band I now remove the reinforcing or thickening strands of yarn and resume the production of rib knitted fabric, which is continued for a length sufficient to form the top 7 of the-stocking, and when this has been completed I resume the production of bi-knit fabric with heavier yarn and coarser stitches until a length sufficient for the knee portion 4 of the stocking has been produced, whereupon the thickening yarns are again removed, the stitches again shortened, and ribbed fabric for the production of the leg portion 8 of the stocking is knitted. ,When this has been completed biknit fabric of the character before described is produced of a length suflicient for the heel portion 5 of the stocking, and a short length of rib fabric 9 is then knitted prior to the resumption of bi-knit web for another garter band. The web of fabric thus produced is then severed through the short ribbed sections close to the garter band and heel and the stitches of the ribbed fabric 9 are transferred to the needles of the footing machine, doubling up of stitches being resorted to because of the lesser number of needles in said footing machine, and the surplus stitches being raveled back in order to form a clean line of union between the two fabrics.

The knitting of the foot portion 10 and toe pocket 11 upon the footing machine and the closing of said toe on the line w completes the formation of the stocking web shown in Fig. l.

The garter band 3 of the stocking provides a strong and substantial web for the attachment of the usual hose supporter which web is not so susceptible to injury as the ordinary ribbed web.

The bi-knit knee section 4 of the stocking, being a double web containing a greater number of strands of yarn than the ribbed port-ion of the stocking is, consequently, better enabled to resist wear than such ordinary ribbed fabric, and the same is true of the heel band 5 of the stocking, and in addit-ion to the wear-resisting quality due to these features of construction, the stocking is, because of the fact that the bi-knit 'knee and heel portions of the same extend completely around it, not subject to the same limitations in use as an ordinary stocking,

for it will be apparent that it is immaterial which part of the web constitutes the front of the knee or the back of the heel, which are the parts most subject to wear, hence my improved stocking can be turned or shifted in position so as to bring different portions of the web successively into position at the front of the knee or back of the heel, the toe of the stocking being practically the same in all portions and hence lending itself perfectly to such change of position. This, however, is not essential to the broader embodiment of my invention.

The importance of using what I term biknit fabric in the knee and heel bands of the stocking will be understood when it is borne in mind that it would be impossible to increase to the extent which is advisable, the thickness or number of strands in the knitting yarn if rib knitting was continued throughout the entire stocking, as the needles thus employed in rib knitting would be overloaded, whereas when the needles are independently operated such objection is not encountered.

In Fig. 2 of the drawing, I have shown in the ribbed portion of the fabric successive light and dark courses, and have shown one portion of the bi-knit web as composed of dark stitches and the other of light stitches, in order to indicate from the drawing itself that a plurality of yarn guides have been employed, but it will be evident that this is simply for purposes of illustration and that in practice the stocking may be composed of courses of the same color or shade throughout, or the ribbed portion of the stocking may, if desired, be knit wit-h a single yarn guide and an additional yarn guide may be brought into operation in producing the biknit fabric but even in such case a heavier yarn or greater number of strands of yarn is preferably employed in one or both of the guides used in producing said biknit fabric, and longer stitches will be drawn in said fabric than in the ribbed fabric in order to impart to it the needed increase in diameter to enable it to stretch to the same extent as the ribbed fabric.

Having thus described my invention, I clatim and desire to secure by Letters Paten l. A stocking having a leg portion knitted in rib stitch, a heel band knitted in separate plain webs, and a foot portion consisting of a plain web joining a rib course at the front of the bi-knit heel band, substantially as specified.

2. A stocking having a leg portion knitted in rib stitch, a heel band knitted in separate plain webs, and a foot portion consisting 0 a plain web joining a rib course at the front of the bi-knit heel band and gaging a seamless toe, substantially as speci- 3. A stockin having a leg portion knitted in rib stltch, a knee band knitted in separate plain webs, a heel band also knitted in separate plain webs, and a foot consisting of a plain Web united to the ribbed fabric at the front of the heel band, substantially as specified.

4. A stocking having a leg portion knitted in rib stltch, a knee band knitted in separate plain'webs, a heel band also knitted in separate plain webs, and a foot consistin of a plain web united to the ribbed fa ric at the front of the heel band, and gaging a seamless toe, substantially as speci- 5. A stocking having a leg portion knitted in rib stltch and a heel band knitted in separate plain webs, extending completely around the stocking, substantially as specified.

,6. A stockin having a leg portion knitted in rib stltch, a heel band knitted in separate plain webs, extending completely around the stocking, and a foot portion congissing of a plain web, substantially as speci- Z. A stocking having a leg portion knltted in rib stltch, a heel band knitted in separate plain webs, extending completely around the stocking, and a foot portion consisting of a lain web 'oining a rib course at the front 0 the bi-knlt heel band, substantially as specified.

8. A stocking having a leg A portion knitted in rib stitch, a heel band knltted in separate plain webs, extending completely 10. A stocking having a vleg portion knitted in rib stitch, a knee band knitted in separate plain webs extending completely around the stocking, i a heel band also knitted in separate plain webs extending completely around the stocking, and a foot consisting of a plain web united to the ribbed fabric at the front of the heel band,

substantially as specified.

11. A stocking having a leg portion knitted in rib stitch, a lmee band knitted in separate plain webs extending completely around the stocking, a heel band also knitted in separate plain webs extending completely around the stocking, and a foot consisting of a plain web united to the ribbed fabric at the front of the heel band, and having a seamless toe, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

' ROBERT W. SCOTT.

Witnesses:

WALTER CmsM, Jos, H. KLEIN. 

